Bacteriocinogeny, the way to acquire survival advantages through biosynthetic regulation: a review

Abstract:

In habitant niche the bacteriocinogeny facilitates the producer with survival advantages by two ways: 1) through elevating colonization capacity due to superficial hydrophobicity of bacteriocins aggregation, and 2) through inhibiting competitors by dysfunction of biofilm formation, wall synthesis, membrane integrity and essential genes expression. However, both approaches are demanding either metabolism-wise or energy-wise. In nature, the producer strains have evolved a panel of subtle induction mechanisms, such as auto-induction, co-culture induction and environmental induction. These unique mechanisms enable such a sophisticated regulation of biosynthesis, so that the global metabolic network and bacterocinogeny are well balanced. The bacteriocin tolerance or resistance is mostly associated with mutations on cell membrane fluidities, metabolic pathways and surface receptors. The use of bacteriocin should be urged to avoid the potential spread of resistance, just as the emergency of drug-resistant pathogens as found nowadays.